


Dr Feelgood (or How Boyd Learned to Say No to Shane and Mean It)

by LuciFern



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Boyd is so done, Grey-A Tobi Rieder, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Shane is so vanilla, almost tagged this Shane Done and it's pretty freaking accurate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-17
Updated: 2016-07-17
Packaged: 2018-07-24 11:37:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,313
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7506817
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuciFern/pseuds/LuciFern
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Boyd thought it was a little creepy how Mike stalked social media to gather the evidence, the way that Shane tried to counsel Max and Duke, even Connor and Tobi, to prevent any falling outs from occurring. Vermy just laughed. At everything. Marty just shrugged when eyes turned to him, not really sure what he was expected to say. Olie advocated just waiting and watching, that Murphy was a kid at heart despite being almost the same age (he also scowled at being lumped in as an Old Guy, and was carefully neutral about his breakdown last year). Shane, despite his best fatherly attempts, got nothing but confused looks and “Okay, Doaner” when he tried his route. Mike refused to give up either his twitter handle or his other social media accounts, despite the group now knowing he had them. Boyd still thought the whole thing was being blown out of proportion.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dr Feelgood (or How Boyd Learned to Say No to Shane and Mean It)

No one could tell you when it started, really. The team had become pretty immune to the close physical relationships some roomies had after the first year with both Boeds and Olie on the roster. To be completely honest, it was only Boeds and Olie who noticed it, at first, everyone else just ignoring the way that Murphy would drape himself over Tobi, would buy him cheap plastic crap and take a million pictures to send out of Tobi laughing, covered in the cheap plastic crap, celebrating whatever Murphy had decided needed celebrating that day. And, okay, it even took Boeds and Olie catching Tobi’s soft look as Connor kissed the hell out of him from the corner of their eyes during their own kiss, that New Year’s party.

 

The point is, it was so ingrained in the team that they were … something … that it wasn’t until Murphy started taking out first Duke, then Max, the rookies each making laughable comments on their instagrams about what a great date he was, that the Old Guys conferenced. After all, the other young’uns didn’t know the dynamic, hadn’t really seen enough to question the “jokes”. The Old Guys, though, they were worried. No one wanted a repeat of Olie’s breakdown, not from two of their rising stars.

 

Boyd thought it was a little creepy how Mike stalked social media to gather the evidence, the way that Shane tried to counsel Max and Duke, even Connor and Tobi, to prevent any falling outs from occurring. Vermy just laughed. At everything. Marty just shrugged when eyes turned to him, not really sure what he was expected to say. Olie advocated just waiting and watching, that Murphy was a kid at heart despite being almost the same age (he also scowled at being lumped in as an Old Guy, and was carefully neutral about his breakdown last year). Shane, despite his best fatherly attempts, got nothing but confused looks and “Okay, Doaner” when he tried his route. Mike refused to give up either his twitter handle or his other social media accounts, despite the group now knowing he had them. Boyd still thought the whole thing was being blown out of proportion.

 

The dates continued, and clearly everyone knew. Max and Connor would chirp Duke, Duke and Connor would chirp Max, and Max and Duke would chirp Connor’s random Tobi posts. Then came post-season. Then summer, with long-distance posts so sickeningly sweet it made even Olie’s teeth hurt. But nothing from Tobi, who saved his social media for PR-approved statements only.

 

By the time training camp arrived, the Old Guys were antsy. This was not helped when the first thing they saw about it was a snap that Max had sent to the team – they assumed by accident, though at least it wasn’t public – of Murphy and Duke making out. Then Duke and Max making out. Then Murphy draped over Tobi, kissing his cheek while the German laughed at the no-longer-rookies’ antics. It got a little more explicit after that, and despite there being the open secret of Olie’s relationship, and the fact that they’d all seen each other naked at some point, none of them really wanted to see  _ that _ .

 

Which only made it more confusing that on-ice hadn’t changed. Vermy was still laughing, though it was mostly at Shane’s expense. Boyd wondered why he put up with them. Marty still wasn’t sure what he was expected to say, because clearly whatever was going on had worked for them last season and he’d kind of like a repeat this year. Mike couldn’t look any of them in the eye without going red. Shane was doing the awkward dad thing he did with his teenaged daughter, much to his own mortification. Olie just rolled his eyes and did the things that had earned him an A.

 

It came to a head at the after-party for their first win (and first two-day break between games) of the new season. Surprisingly, it was Mike who snapped, asking Tobi in not as quiet a voice as he’d been aiming for, “Doesn’t that bother you,” pointing at the rather indecent display Connor, Max and Duke were making in the corner.

 

“Should it?”

 

“You guys are….” Mike didn’t even know how to finish that sentence without sounding like a jerk, which he was thankfully still sober enough to realize.

 

“Dating. Yes.” Tobi had the soft smile he used at PR events on. “What’s your point?”

 

“Doesn’t it, I don’t know, bother you that he’s got his tongue down their throats?”

 

Tobi just shrugged, taking another swig of his beer. “Not really. And that’s not all he’s had down their throats.”

 

Mike should have seen it coming. He didn’t, though, which was why he groaned and got up.

 

The next attempt was, sadly, from Boyd. Shane was too shaken by Mike’s story to even touch the subject. Marty didn’t see what the big deal was, because they were still playing great hockey so it obviously worked for them. Antoine muttered in French, shaking his head at the subject now he was focused on the new season. And Olie and Boeds just asked what the big deal was, since there’d never been a confrontation over their relationship. It was Shane’s pleading, “We need to get to the bottom of this,” for a week straight that got Boyd to crack.

 

So, he’d walked up to Connor after practice one day and took great (secret) pleasure in hearing Shane choke as he said, “I hear you really know how to treat a guy. Take me out tonight.”

 

“Um, okay?” Connor looked to Tobi, who looked back and shrugged.

 

And the locker room continued as normal, the new rookies having quickly adjusted to Connor and his so-called dates.

 

Which is how Boyd found himself sitting across from a still-confused Connor, at a rather nice steakhouse.

 

“So… you don’t have a preference?” Considering they were still looking at the menu, Murphy’s timing could have been better.

 

“No, of course I have a preference. Scallops with the chicken and a Belgian beer. You?”

 

Honestly, no one had better poker face than Boyd, not while still looking human. He refused to take pity on the younger guy, though.

 

“I meant for dating, but sirloin with the ceasar salad and a merlot.”

 

Nodding, Boyd finally conceded. At least the kid was direct. “No offense to you and your apparently amazing wooing skills, but it’s just ladies for me.”

 

Connor looked somehow more confused than ever, even as he seemed to relax. “Oh. Then why…?”

 

“Doaner won’t let it rest. He wants details – well, not  _ details _ details – about you and Maxie and Duke and Tobi.”

 

Comprehension dawned. “Oh! Well, I mean, Max and Duke can’t exactly hook up much, with, y’know, Duke swelling up like a balloon if he’s in the same city block as a dog, and the both of them being totally gone on each other. So I offer my services.”

 

“And your services being dating them?”

 

“Nah, not really. I mean, Tobes like the cuddles and shit, but he’s not much for the more intimate parts, so he kinda suggested that I help Duke and Max with their thing and get my own while I’m at it.”

 

Boyd blinked. “That… makes no sense.”

 

Boyish grin firmly in place, Connor took Boyd’s hand in his and placed his other hand over his heart. “I… am a lover, not a fighter. I just happen to have enough love to spread around between two guys who couldn’t be in the same room most days, despite their hearts’ desires.”

 

“You play defense; you are so a fighter. It’s literally your job.”

 

And that’s how Boyd Gordon got to blow Shane Doan’s mind (among others) that they really didn’t need to understand the dynamics of the relationship, they just needed to respect that it existed.

 

**Author's Note:**

> So, I wrote this a while back, like pre-Pens-winning-the-Cup while, so obviously the roster is wrong (I'll miss you Boyd, and Boeds you better be making it up to Olie) but yeah. Premise is poly Connor and asexual Tobi, in case you missed it. Based on the actual real life "dates" Connor has taken Duke and Max on, as chronicled by their Instagrams, and the actual pictures he's posted of Tobi wearing tiaras and shit.


End file.
